Memory Lane
by Zico
Summary: ANB: Spyro and Sparx take time out to visit the swamp, taking Ignitus with them who learns that Spyro's past wasn't as peaceful as he wanted to believe.
1. Chapter 1

**A/N: **Wow, a fanfic at last. I had this idea in my head for a while and I've finally managed o get it down. This is the first serious fanfiction I have written so forgive me if some of the characters are a little bit OOC.

**Disclaimer:** How I wish I did, but I don't own Spyro…. As simple as that.

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_Memory_

The Silver River and the forests surrounding its banks had barely changed at all. Spyro trotted through the thick bushes, sticking out like a sore thumb against the light green leaves with his dark purple scales. Sparx followed close behind him and hovered just above the spines of his tail. Spyro's footsteps were silenced by the thick mud that was the forest floor. The small splashing sounds were followed by loud squishing thuds as The Fire Guardian, Ignitus, followed them.

Both Spyro and Sparx were thrilled to be back home. It was after freeing Cyril from the shrine up on Tall Plains that Ignitus advised them to take a break. Spyro had just finished training with the Ice element, but even the legendary Purple Dragon had his limits. It was exhausting training straight after the relentless battles on the plains and it was unwise to go straight to Munitions Forge to free the final guardian after that.

_(__**A/N**__: Yes the constant fighting is annoying.)_

Spyro took a deep breath, closing his eyes as he breathed in the air and continued through the mud. Spyro had grown up in these conditions and so the feeling of mud seeping between his toes was pleasant to him. Ignitus on the other hand wasn't having such a good time. The thick mud was making it difficult to move as he dragged his heavy tail behind him; the red dragon grimaced quickly but shot a small smile whenever Spyro or Sparx turned to check on him.

Ignitus insisted that he came with them. After all he wanted to meet the ones who had rescued and raised Spyro as their own and thank them profusely for the selfless act. He felt it was worth putting up with the mud and the… Less than attractive wildlife and carnivorous looking plants (Though Spyro had assured them they were harmless).

Much to Ignitus' relief they reached the grove the Dragonfly village was located in, hidden by wide, tall trees and thick over grown bushes on almost all sides except for one part which was the river bank. Spyro came to a halt and grinned before looking up at Sparx who flew past him and hovered in front of his face, swaying in the air with an identical expression.

Ignitus looked the miniature village over, He could see that plants of various shapes and sizes seemed to be hollowed out and he could just make out minute doors and windows. It was like something out of a fairytale that the elders read to him when he was Spyro's age. He smiled softly, this place seemed peaceful enough, far away from the raging wars that the dragons had fought years ago. It seemed just how Ignitus wanted Spyro to grow up. Peacefully.

He looked down at the small dragon who was now taking small steps into the center of the small village. Ignitus didn't follow. He was too afraid he would step on something, or someone. Spyro frowned as he stood on his hind legs, his wings spreading to give him balance. There was nobody around. Sparx flitted about Spyro.

"Hey! Anyone here?!" He called as he cupped his small hands to the side of his mouth to amplify the sound. Spyro frowned and looked up at Sparx. "Something like this only happens if a 'monsters' nearby right?" He asked as Sparx floated down to his eye level.

"Yeah and I think I know who that monster might be" Sparx shot an accusing look at Ignitus who looked sheepish and confused for a second. Spyro glared at Sparx and paced back in Ignitus' direction to explain the situation.

"Don't worry" He said reassuringly, "I guess they could hear your footsteps as we got closer and mistook it for something not so friendly"

Ignitus simple nodded, "So they hide at the slightest sign of danger I see. Understandable, given their size and the world we currently live in". He watched as Spyro made his way back to the center of the grove and began trying to coax the hidden dragonflies from their hiding places.

"It's me, Spyro, you can all come out!" He called out. Sparx joined in again.

"Yeah, yeah I'm here too, it's Sparx! Anyone remember us?!"

At first it seemed hopeless. Nothing but silence followed. But then, slowly came the small rustle of leaves and a small, red and pink ball of light, similar to that of Sparx' glow emerged from the cover of a large leaf. The glowing ball slowed to a stop, hovering still for a few seconds before zooming forward with almost unbelievable speed towards the two.

"It's you! Your safe!" The red dragonfly approached Sparx first and pulled him into a warm hug before turning to Spyro, who was too big to hug so she just clung onto his snout affectionately. Ignitus smiled before muttering a single word under his breath. "Nina". Spyro's foster mother fit the description the two had given her, her warm personality fit the colour of her glow, kind and loving.

Another dragonfly emerged from behind the same leaf. Blue this time and a bit bigger than Nina. Ignitus quickly came to the conclusion that this was Flash. Spyro and Sparx' father. He didn't rush forward like Nina had done but greeted the boy's warmly.

Others soon followed. Slowly creeping out of their hiding places. They each shone different colors and soon hundreds of glowing dragonflies lined the edge of the grove. Ignitus smiled as he watched the heart-warming reunion between parents and children.

What made him frown were the hushed comments coming from the other dragonflies. Ignitus stayed at the entrance to the grove, it seemed the residence were too busy focusing on the scene before them then noticing the large, red dragon.

Ignitus lowered his head to listen carefully to the whispering dragonflies.

"Where has he been?"

"Did it have to come back?"

"He came back, but why?"

The Fire Guardian suppressed the growl rising in his throat, he could understand why the dragonflies must have been wary of Spyro at first, but had the rest of the village ever gotten to know him? Spyro was one of the kindest dragons he had met in long while; Spyro would only hurt those who had hurt others, like the Apes that hunted the small purple dragon relentlessly.

The small group had noticed the crowd that had gathered. Sparx waved and Spyro gave a nervous smile before turning towards his adopted parents. "Mom, Dad. Follow us, I have someone I want you to meet" He cast his violet eyes over to Ignitus who got the hint and backed out of the entrance to the grove and out of sight. It was way too crowded now and seeing how the rest of the dragonflies spoke about Spyro, Ignitus knew his presence would not be welcome yet.

Spyro waded through the mud as they left the grove. The other dragonflies gathered round the entrance to watch them go. Flash looked over his shoulder at them and grumbled to himself. Nina just sighed; she didn't understand why the others were so harsh to Spyro, it was sad really. The rest of them were so narrow-minded and paranoid about the outside world, the fear fed by stories they were told when they were younger about creatures that would tear them apart and squash them on sight.

They had also heard legends of giant fire-breathing lizards and the wars they waged, mighty winged beasts that could control an element with a single breath. She gazed over at Spyro, he fitted that description perfectly, yet she had never seen him fly and he was to gentle to be a blood thirsty beast she was told in her younger days.

The four came to a halt in a smaller clearing not to far from the village grove. Spyro stepped up to Ignitus who had been waiting patiently. Spyro stepped to the side, giving the two dragonflies a good view of the red dragon. The reaction was to be expected. Shock, disbelief, maybe even fear. Flash and Nina held onto each other as they looked up at the large dragon. Spyro cleared his throat and began the introductions.

"Mom, Dad, this is Ignitus, He's a dragon, just like me" Spyro said proudly. Ignitus smiled, deciding against showing of his sharp teeth, he knew he looked threatening enough because of his sheer size. The two dragonflies relaxed a little and Sparx took over. "Hey its okay this guy doesn't bite". It was then that the two relaxed completely.

Ignitus bent his head down to their level, a sign of respect. "It is an honor to meet you at last" Ignitus spoke, "I must thank you for rescuing the young one here, you have helped us more than you can now through that act". Flash and Nina seemed dumbstruck. This didn't like the horrible creatures they had heard about. Flash was the first to speak after a moment of awkward silence. He laughed nervously "Look it was nothing okay…. Really" He added. Nina agreed, "He was a child in need we couldn't just leave him". Ignitus raised his head with a small smile. Of course they wouldn't understand what he had said now. "I think I need to explain a few things, do you have a few minuets?" he asked, "I have a rather long story to tell". Nina nodded and watched as Ignitus sat down in the shallow mud. Nina took Flash's hand and pulled over to sit on Ignitus' tail.

Sparx turned to Spyro. "Lets get back to the village I want get reunited with a few people, and you can rub it in some peoples faces that you're a legendary dragon not an over grown swamp lizard" Spyro sighed and shook his head and followed Sparx back to the village, he had a feeling this was going to be a long day.

Meanwhile Ignitus started his story "Well it all started with a prophecy…-"

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And that is the first chapter done, I hope I don't procrastinate to the extent of never finishing this, 'cause I usually do. So….yell at me in the reviews or something, the more reviews, the more likely I am to update! I love blackmail. Lol.


	2. Chapter 2

Second chapter, yay! Thanks too all of you who reviwed!

**Disclaimer:** You all know the drill.

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_Memory Lane chapter 2_

There was more than one clearing joining onto the Dragonflies grove. Each had a different purpose; one for teaching the younger dragonflies, one for adults to meet and decide on 'important' matters. There was one that was especially for the younger ones. Tall grass and hollowed stumps half sunk in the muddy ground, perfect for hide and seek among other games.

Spyro hopped through the tall grass and stood on his hind legs to see over the small field. Sparx flew past him and hovered in front of him. He turned to Spyro and shrugged, "Wow no ones here that's odd" Sparx stated. Spyro nodded and lowered himself down to stand on all fours again. Young dragonflies were always here, the place was normally teeming with them.

Spyro tilted his head as he made his way out of the tall grass. "Wonder why" He muttered as he hopped up onto a log and faced the dragonfly. Sparx hovered in front of him, "Ah their probably having a meeting or something dumb like that" He suggested and shrugged. Spyro shook his head and sighed, "About me I bet" He mumbled as he closed his eyes momentarily.

Sparx frowned, "Yeah but you know you don't have to worry about what they think anymore Spyro, I mean, c'mon your some legendary… once in a purple… thing right? You don't have to pretend to be a dragonfly anymore" Sparx smiled reassuringly and put a hand on his adopted brother's snout. "You know I hope those three idiots show up again cause then you can show them who and what you really are" Spyro shivered a bit at the mention of the group.

--

Nina gazed up in awe as Ignitus finished his tale. She smiled and turned to Flash "So what he means is, is that out little Spyro is destined to change the world" Her smile broadened and Flash smiled in return before turning to Ignitus, "I always knew he was special, no matter what anyone said we knew he was meant for something great".

Ignitus smiled and nodded, "He is already doing great things and in my dreams I see what he will become". His face turned serious again as he lowered his head to the dragonflies level. "However what concerns me is the manner in which the others spoke of Spyro" Nina looked down for a second before taking a deep breath, like some one speaking of a traumatic event.

"Everyone was weary of Spyro, even when he still was in his egg. The Mayor of our village never liked him and so many dragonflies followed in suit. There were some who didn't care what Spyro looked like and treated him as, well and over grown dragonfly" Ignitus listened intently and nodded for her to continue. Nina took the encouragement and carried on. "Well it was when Spyro and Sparx were older that the Mayor's son and some of his friends began bullying him" She shook her head and Flash put an arm around her, it was difficult for parents to talk about such a subject.

Ignitus let a growl rise up in his throat, "Is that so…" He muttered, he was beginning to think he should have a talk with this Mayor of theirs. "Nothing to worry about now" He said soothingly, "They can't touch Spyro now, he knows shy he is different" He explained. Flash grinned and nodded, "That's right; nothing they say can affect him".

--

"Well look who it is"

Spyro raised his heard at the spiteful voice. Sparx too turned to face the speaker.

"The purple freak" Another jeered. Sparx' eyes narrowed.

A large dragonfly which glowed green floated a few feet away, accompanied by two others one glowing a light blue the other, orange. Spars took his hand from Spyro's nose and folded his arms over his chest, "Oh if it isn't Tallow" Sparx said in mock happiness. "I was hoping a frogweed got you" he muttered.

Tallow ignored him and flew over to the two. His two followers, Tabitha and Nasco followed close behind. "I never thought he'd come back" Tabitha giggled, her blue glow flared up for a moment.

Nasco sniggered "Nah, it would be too good to be true that this giant swamp lizard would leave forever". Sparx growled almost comically. Tallow turned to him, "Look goldy, go back to your mom yeah?" Spyro growled and interrupted Sparx who was about to yell to high heaven at the Mayor's son. "Why are you here Tallow?" he asked as he narrowed his eyes.

Tallow shrugged, "Just saying hi" He lied, "You've been away for a loooong time you know". Sparx flew past him and hovered next to Spyro, "Look you leave us alone or savior boy here doesn't toast you".

The three burst out laughing, "Toast us, how?" Spyro grinned of, of course they wouldn't know. He decided he would save the 'toasting for later and motioned for Sparx to follow him. He got up from the log and padded his way to go out of clearing. Tallow blinked, "H-hey get back you… purple thing" He had never done that before, walking out was a new one. Tallow flew after the purple dragon. Tabitha and Nasco could only watch helplessly as Tallow was sent speeding into a tree trunk by one flick of Spyro's tail. It was obvious too all three of them, that this wasn't the 'freak' they had been bulling anymore. He had changed.

--

Ignitus held back a laugh as he watched the scene end. Flash had gone back to main clearing so only he and Nina remained to watch Spyro overcome the small group. Nina gasped in surprise and pride. Spyro had gotten a one up on Tallow, however now he was going to have hell to pay from the Mayor for striking his perfect son.

Ignitus turned to her, "You see, Spyro is strong enough to take on a small army of apes so one hot headed dragonfly should be easy to take care of" Nina giggled and watched as Nasco and Tabitha helped a very surprised Tallow up from the muddy swamp floor.

"Well I can see that the Mayor and his son are going to be bought down a few notches, and maybe those narrow minded neighbors of mine will finally see how great my second son is" She spoke with hope in her voice. Ignitus found this a situation in which he wanted to look in the pool of visions to find out what would happen next; however that would have spoiled the surprise.

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**A/N: **And that is chapter two done, yes it is rather short, only two and a half pages this time. Next up in the third chapter; Spyro 'talks' to the mayor. Hurray! Remember R&R


	3. Chapter 3

Thanks for the reviews once again Petals

Thanks for the reviews once again Petals! This one is late I know but I was on a very bad vacation.

**Disclaimer:** I own nothing.

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Chapter three

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The mud under him squelched sickeningly. Ignitus shuddered at the noise and gazed up past the trees of the small clearing to see the sky gradient from royal blue to an orange and pink color as the sun set past the trees. The stars winked down at him from the higher points in the sky and the two moons were now becoming visible.

Ignitus closed his eyes and tried to get comfortable in the wet earth. He had only wanted them to stay one day but the scenes that took place hours before had him curious of how this whole trip would end. He looked to his left as the lights from the small dragonfly village glowed comfortingly through the trees. He narrowed his eyes to sharpen his gaze to see Spyro.

Unlike him the smaller dragon found these conditions homely. To Spyro the swamp floor was a comfortable bed. Ignitus had to admit it was soft, but not comforting to him. The dragonflies were returning to their houses leaving Spyro, who was too big to fit into Nina and Flash's home, sleeping outside. Sparx faithfully had decided to stay out with him. So Spyro had hunched himself up with his tail wrapped round himself, Sparx sleeping on his tail and snoring gently.

Ignitus raised his head from the muck. If he came back to the temple covered in mud Cyril would not stop joking about it for weeks. He closed his eyes in an attempt to sleep. He would worry about that when he got back. To his annoyance just as he felt he was about to get some shut eye he heard voices, close by, the next clearing over perhaps? The clearings weren't very big. He frowned and slowly rose into a crouch and crept over to the other side of the area and peered through the trees.

Ignitus suppressed a groan as he recognized one speaker. Tallow. He seemed upset and was telling the other dragonfly what had happened between him and Spyro earlier. Ignitus shook his head and listened gravely.

"He attacked me Dad, I didn't even do nothin' either"

Ignitus glowered, "That little…" He swallowed down a curse word and saw Tallow's father nod.

"We'll talk about this tomorrow, I promise I'll have that overgrown swamp lizard punished for this" His Father replied. Tallow seemed please by this and perked up immediately before both flew off in the direction of the village, past the small entrance to Ignitus' clearing and were lucky not to get singed alive by a very angry fire dragon.

Ignitus returned to the patch we had been lying in and seethed silently. He'd bide his time. From the vision he saw before they set of for here Spyro would prove his worth too all of them. With that comforting thought in mind Ignitus lowered his head into the mud and slept.

--

Spyro narrowed his eyes. His wings twitched and swayed nervously on his back. He wrinkled his nose and waited. He knew what this was about, the village leader; Reo wanted to speak with him. He had been told to wait in the community clearing, the meeting was supposed to be private but private did not include Tallow and his followers who were watching from behind a tree trunk with an amused expression on their little faces.

His claws shifted anxiously in the dirt as he looked around and finally caught a comforting and calming sight. Hidden in the shadow of the trees and made visible by the speckled light shining through the canopy. Orange eyes watched him. So Ignitus had heard.

He turned his attention to the entrance. He was sure Reo was only making him wait to make him even more panicky. He took a deep breath and closed his eyes. He had fought monsters three times his size before now. So why was he so worried about something like this?

He slowly opened his eyes again, silently asking the Ancestors for strength as he spotted a dark blue glow entering the clearing. Spyro took a deep breath again. Finally Reo had shown up. This certain dragonfly was the largest in the village, not by much though. Spyro was sure Flash could take him on easily.

Reo moved slowly across the clearing and finally came face to face with the dragon. Spyro forced himself to maintain eye contact. _'Don't look away, don't look down, look straight ahead' _He chanted over and over in his head. He kept his gaze steady, showing the villages' leader he wasn't afraid anymore.

Reo didn't take a blind bit of notice. "I take it you know why you're here" It was more a statement than a question. Spyro nodded slowly, keeping his focus on maintaining eye contact, which was difficult when Reo turned his back on him, his tail swaying as he moved away and turned slowly, an unreadable expression on his face.

"Why did you smack _my_ son with your tail?" Reo asked in a very over calm manner as his eyes narrowed.

"He was making fun of me sir" Spyro replied slowly before taking a deep breath and wincing, raising one wing up in a protective manner as Reo bellowed something that could reduce a village gathering to stillness.

"Silence.." Reo repeated, his voice hissing the words like venom. "How dare you accuse my son of something so vulgar, I bet you were the one bullying hi-"

Reo's words were cut short as a low, and warning growl came from the trees nearby, even Tallow, Tabitha and Nasco, who were trying to stifle their laughter, stopped their actions, their expressions turning from one of amusement to fear.

It was Spyro's turn to be amused. Ignitus wasn't enjoying the show one bit. He quickly wiped the smirk off his face as Reo turned to him.

"What was that?" The dragonfly's voice was shaking, and the other three watching had exited, stage left, very quickly. Spyro shrugged, "Hear what?" He asked as he tried to sound genuinely curious. Reo wasn't looking at Spyro anymore and instead his eyes were slowly scanning the clearing.

"We'll finish this later" he said quickly and giving Spyro one last glare turned to leave.

Spyro's small grin of satisfaction faded quickly as he heard something horribly familiar and it wasn't Ignitus this time. It was a laugh, His eyes tapered at the noise. Those damn Apes. He himself growled as he saw one leap from the cover of the trees nearby, he was holding a small wooden cage, like the one Sparx had been caught in before he had learned to breathe fire.

It all happened so quickly. Spyro charged forward. Spinning in the mud to whack Reo out of harms way as the Ape descended on him, cage door open. "Reo, go!" Spyro called firmly over his shoulder at the dazed dragonfly that didn't need telling twice.

The small dragon charged at the ape again, who, surprise, was trying to get out harms way, though he didn't escape Spyro's fiery breathe before being slapped by his tail, sending him skidding across the mud. At a distance Spyro grabbed the dumb animal with a bolt of his electric breath to finish it off by slamming him against the hard tree trunk.

With the battle over Spyro made sure Reo had escaped by doing a quick double check over his shoulder before approaching what was left of the ape. It's unmoving body quickly flashed from existence and in its place were left sparkling gems which immediately flew from the muddy floor and encircled Spyro's body as he absorbed their power. He sighed happily, feeling the Ancestor's energy burning pleasantly through him as he turned to leave the clearing. "Reo better remember this" He muttered under his breath.

--

Ignitus smiled proudly as Spyro left the clearing; on mere chimp was no match for Spyro's power. Making sure the cost was clear Ignitus risked taking flight and landing in the clearing the fight had taken place. He frowned as he looked over the small cage the Ape had brought with him.

"They are after the dragonflies?" Ignitus muttered questioningly as he picked up the wooden cage with one claw to examine it. His frown deepened as he went over the reason's why. Light source? Maybe, the mountain in which the Ape armies lived was one of the darkest places in existence.

That couldn't be the only reason. He lowered his head and burnt the small cage to mere ashes before taking off again, heading back to his own clearing.

--

Tabitha gasped in disbelief as she stared up at the sky. "Did you see? Did you see?" She asked excitedly as she shook Tallow who was also wearing a look which was a mix of fear and wonder. "Yeah I saw" Nasco gave a small nod and didn't take his eyes off where the strange red lizard had been.

"What was it?" Nasco asked and turned to the other two for help. Tallow threw a glare at him, "How should I know?" He asked. Tabitha wore a thoughtful look before she clapped her hands. "It looked kind of like Spyro yes?" The other two nodded in agreement.

Ignitus had been spotted.

**A/N:** Third chapter is fin! Finally, I had a lot of writers block with this one so please excuse the lateness.


	4. Chapter 4

Wow a new chapter finally

Wow a new chapter finally. I've been really busy with college so I couldn't get this done earlier. Anyways, with my excuse over with please enjoy this chapter.

oOo

**Chapter 4**

oOo

Sunlight peeked slowly over the trees. Spyro slowly rose from the ground with a large yawn. He blinked a few times to drive the sleepiness away and scanned the village. It was completely silent. The dragon frowned and looked down at Sparx who had fallen off him sometime in his sleep. Worried, Spyro nudged the gold dragonfly with his paw gently and he soon began to wake up.

"Where is everyone?" Spyro questioned as he took another glance over the tiny village and back at Sparx who was stretching. "How would I know? I was asleep like you" He stated blankly.

"I think we should look around" Spyro suggested, not waiting for Sparx response before walking around the tree stump in the village centre. Sparx followed with a small sigh. Concluding there was no one there, the two headed off towards the Community clearing, there had to be some people there. Before they reached the entrance Nina approached them. "So your finally awake I see" She gave them both a warm smile "Reo called a village meeting. I know how much you hate listening to him drone on so I let you both sleep" she frowned slightly, averting her gaze to the ground for a moment. "This meeting has been called for a very serious reason though" She affirmed quietly.

Spyro and Sparx exchanged a concerned look before asking what had happened. Nina folded her arms and looked up at them again. "It would seem that some of us dragonflies have gone missing" She explained. "What's worse apparently a large creature has been sighted near the village, Reo believes that the monster may be connected to these vanishings".

Spyro thought for a second, "What did this 'monster' look like?" He asked. Nina put a finger too her lip before answering. Well it was Tallow and his friends that saw it, they were a little vague though" She explained, "They said it was huge and could fly".

Spyro raised an eyebrow, "That doesn't narrow it down much" He muttered, "Can we go in?" He asked. Nina nodded and flew back into the clearing, Spyro and Sparx bringing up the rear. As they drew closer to the large group of dragonflies they began picking up Reo's lecture.

"-And I want everyone to remain calm and stay on high alert" Reo said loudly over the quiet chatter of the other dragonflies. "That thing could come back at anytime" He finished and looked round the gathered group, "We need to rid of that thing now" Called a voice from the crowd, there was a mutter of agreement. "Who knows how long this could go on for" Another, louder mutter of agreement followed.

Reo swallowed, he knew where this was going. Tallow rose from his seat and turned to the crowd. "We need someone to catch that thing" He announced. Reo spoke up, "As village leader I should go" he didn't look confident in his statement. Tallow immediately agreed, "Then I'll go with you dad". Reo still wasn't reassured. Tabitha and Nasco exchanged extremely worried looks; if Tallow was going then they would be dragged along with him.

"I'll come too"

The large crowd turned their heads back towards the determined looking purple dragon. "Yeah I- WHAT!?" Sparx reared back from Spyro in surprise. "I'll come with you" Spyro repeated, Sparx sighed in defeat, there was no changing his mind. A ripple of laughter spread through the mass of dragonflies. "What can you do?" One asked. Spyro raised his head proudly before replying. "A lot more than the village leader can do, how big did Tallow say this monster was; now compare that to your size".

There was a ripple of mummers ran through the group, he was right. Reo, taken back by Spyro's announcement merely nodded, "We leave tomorrow then" He said simply, "Everyone is dismissed". On cue the group began filtering out of the clearing Spyro followed, feeling his mothers worried gaze burning into the back of his head.

oOo

Ignitus groaned heavily, he was in trouble now. He was just going to have to wait and hope that they found the apes first and not him. He backed away from the trees he was peering through as quietly as he could, deciding he should move away from the village in case he was seen again, finding out there was a dragon walking around and currently being accused of kidnapping would not do well to Spyro's already bad reputation here. He sighed heavily, watching the smoke spiral up from his snout as he waded through the thick mud and further away from the tiny settlement.


	5. Chapter 5

Right next chapter, I need to make up for not posting for over three months. I'm really, really sorry folks. Oh and too answer flamingdragon522318 review; thank you for yelling at me, it got me motivated again. And I shall use your idea in my later chapters; I was going to do that anyway but whatever, muhahaa. Oh crap spoilers…. Err… Next chapter please.

Disclaimer: I own….Almost nothing.

oOo

Reo floated back and forth in front of the main entrance to the village. He stopped and eyed the five in front of him; Tallow, Tabitha, Nasco, Sparx and the strange purple thing known as Spyro. His eyes held Spyro longer, the lizard didn't shift under his gaze but instead had his eyes closed, seemingly muttering something under his breath. Strange creature. "Right you lot, the creature was sighted north of the village, so we presume the kidnapped dragonflies to be in that direction" he explained and watched they all nodded in reply.

He turned and began flying out of the village, hearing the buzzing of wings and squelching of footsteps of the young ones behind him. Spyro moved to the back, if there were apes around, and he was sure there was after the day before yesterdays attack on Reo, he knew they would attack from behind like they mostly did. He kept an ear out for the sound of their laughter and looked up every now and then to make sure they weren't jumping from tree to tree over head. All seemed clear so far.

More than an hour passed and the group came into an identical looking clearing to the last one. Sparx sighed heavily "This is pointless" He muttered and floated over towards Spyro who was now searching the clearing, Reo and the other three dragonflies stayed were they were, Tallow could be heard complaining loudly. Sparx hovered behind Spyro and gave him a blank stare as he sniffed behind a rock, "Spyro, buddy. Why did you have to volunteer for this?" He asked in a strained tone that showed his frustration clearly. Spyro replied, his voice muffled by the rock. "Well what can you think off that are big and can fly and is a 'monster'?" Spyro asked. Sparx thought for a moment, "Wait, you don't think its Cynder is it?"

Spyro moved his head back, looking over his wing with a frown, "Of course I think its Cynder, to prove it I fought an ape not too long ago, her forces are here Sparx" Spyro moved back, "The ape was carrying a cage of some sort… -Ah, there!" Spyro pulled back again, this time a small wooden cage gripped in his jaw. "Look familiar?" He asked after he put it down.

Sparx floated down to it, inspecting it closely. "Hey that looks like the one they tried to trap me in" Spyro nodded, his point made.

"Exactly, it's our first clue" He turned towards the still bickering group, "We've found something!" He called; there was immediately a skeptical silence. He gripped the cage in his jaw and carried it over, dropping it in the thick mud in front of the group. Reo looked at the cage, before muttering "We must be getting close" He straightened up.

"No thanks to you" Sparx and Spyro muttered in unison. So the group continued on, making very little progress.

"We're going in circles" Nasco announced loudly and the rest turned to 'shush' at him. Spyro personally agreed with him. Since he found the cage they had found nothing else thanks to Reo's crap sense of direction, how he had become village leader was beyond Spyro's comprehension.

"Wait". Spyro looked up. Reo had signaled for the small troupe to stop and pointed towards the ground. There in the mud were foot prints, Spyro recognized the shape, and they belonged to the apes. Reo ordered everyone to be quiet and slowly began following the trail, Spyro was having trouble staying quiet with the sound his foot falls made in the mud and walking slowly only served to nearly get him stuck more than once.

After a few more minuets of this they came to the mouth of a cave. "Right!" Reo announced. Spyro winced; the elder dragonfly was speaking loudly at such a critical time.

The apes obviously agreed too and they immediately flooded out from the bushes. Cackling filled the air and the small group scattered, Spyro and Sparx, used to this, dodged to the attacks and fought back. But they were too preoccupied to realize that one by one the other dragonflies were captured. Tabitha was first, caught of guard as the cage swooped down on her. Next came Nasco and Tallow who were caught together and finally Reo, who was foolishly attempting to fight of one of the apes despite the obvious size difference.

"Er Spyro" Sparx yelled to catch his friends attention. "They got them!" Sparx wailed as he saw the occupied cages be carried off into the cave. Spyro cursed under his breath and chased after them, knocking the ape he had been fighting off it's feet with his tail only too be blocked by more. "There's too many!" Spyro cried desperately as he backed up and realized that he didn't have enough energy for a fury yet.

He reared up, preparing to blow them away with his fire breath before a large jet of orange flame lit up over his head, fireballs flying and landing between the apes, they scattered, some on fire. Spyro turned to see Ignitus; crouched ready to fight. This was short lived as the apes retreated back into the cave, even though they were stupid they knew it was a battle they couldn't win.

"Ignitus!" Spyro turned and ran over to the fire elder. "I tried to stop them, but they got the others" He explained, hanging his head. Ignitus sighed, "Don't fret young one, I doubt any harm will come to them other than the shock of being in a cage". Spyro sniffed, this wasn't much of a comfort.

"I failed though" He replied weakly and Sparx floated down to try and comfort him. Ignitus looked up towards the cave. "Well, we better do something then, let's head back, there is nothing we can do for now". Spyro nodded, not that he wanted to return, the other dragonflies would surely accuse him of the other's capture being his fault.

With this weighing heavy on his mind, both He and Ignitus trudged back towards the village.

oOo

I AM SO SORRY THAT THIS IS SO FREAKIN' LATE!! LIKE A LOOOONG TIME LATE!! Geez so much has happened that I have had no time to get back into writing this. I shall work hard to catch up though, and finish this!


	6. Chapter 6

**Zico: **Screw you art homework. I'm going to write a freakin' chapter! Heeere we go! And thanks for all the reviews; I'm sorry for making you all wait.

**Disclaimer: **You all know the drill by now (wait do I really have to do one for every chapter? Whatever…)

oOo

The sight was shocking. Spyro was speechless and Sparx was oddly silent for this situation. Ignitus looked at the sight in front of them with a steely silence; he was seething under his calm looking exterior. "I let them down" Spyro said finally.

The small dragonfly village was in ruins, it had been over run whilst the others were away. There was no sign of anyone escaping. "It isn't your fault Spyro" Ignitus encouraged, "I should have stayed and watched over them" He whispered sadly.

"He's right you know" said Sparx, "There was nothing you could have done".

"They took Mum and Dad" Spyro murmured, as he closed his eyes, his head drooping down to the floor. Ignitus nudged him with his tail, a strange but infectious smile on his face.

"Well now young one" He began as he leaned closer to him, "We'll just have to get them back now won't we". Spyro raised his head and looked up at him with a determined look. He nodded as did Sparx in agreement. It was time to mount a rescue.

oOo

Reo paced in his small cage. How frustrating, it must have been that purple things fault, yeah; his bright colour must have attracted the apes. Yeah, it had nothing to do with his loud voice at all.

He turned to look round the cave again. It was dank and dark, the cave walls had been carved into narrow shelves, all of them filled with cages housing individual dragonflies, they were the only things lighting the cave.

"Listen" he yelled over the chatter of scared dragonflies, "We need to escape". There was a murmur of agreement followed by silence.

"How do we do that?" Came a faint reply for somewhere to his left.

More silence.

"Don't worry!" They all looked towards the cage high up to the right. Inside Nina puffed her chest out proudly. "My boys will surely find a way to get us out" She announced with such faith it stunned everyone for a moment.

Reo began laughing. "Oh that purple klutz and you cowardly son? What will they do?" There was a ripple of laughter. Nina was not put off. "A lot more than you can ever do, you have no idea about-"She silenced herself as Flash shook his head; they would not believe the explanation anyway.

Reo took the silence as his answer "No they won't come to help us, we need to find her own way out" He replied coldly.

Both Nina and Flash glared hard at him.

oOo

"So… The dragonflies have been successfully captured then?" Cynder asked as she looked down at the large ape in front of her. The ape nodded and Cynder smirked in satisfaction, "Perfect, we can drain the power they give off to help forge better weapons" She rested her head on her claw.

"There is one problem though" The ape began as he shook a bit.

"And what would that be, Ironbite?" the black dragoness asked, "You know how much I hate problems".

Ironbite gulped and continued, "The purple dragon has been seen in the swamp ma'am, my guards-"he was cut off by Cynder rising from her perch rapidly.

"What?" She hissed venomously, her dark green eyes narrowing. "I see, this could be a problem" She muttered as she turned away from the terrified Ironbite.

"Oh and you better make sure he doesn't interfere" She added as she looked back at him. "Or there will be severe consequences" Her eyes flashed dangerously before she made her way further into the cave.

oOo

**Zico: ** And so the plot thickens. I'm so glad that I'm getting back into typing this again.


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